Family was most important to Brad. He met his beautiful wife of 36 years, Diana, at RFI. She was a drafter and as a technician, he found every excuse to be in the office trying to woo her to go out with him. He finally won her heart and they married in 1985. They built a family together, kids and grandkids followed. 

Brad strived to be a present husband, father, and grandfather even after becoming COO/President of RFI, where he impacted the security industry’s community for 40 years. He didn’t like to miss out on anything…so he coached little league, visited his kids at school and work, and even went to his granddaughter’s swim lessons “just to be part of her world”. Brad often said he “gathered his energy from people”. He loved going to industry events, sporting events, family events, and even Costco, where he loved the sport of dodging people and carts! He just loved being around people. God, in turn, used him to reflect the energy he gathered back to everyone he met. He was intentional when he provided positive encouragement and expressed genuine gratitude to those around him. He was a man of integrity, honesty, and compassion for others.

Brad’s battle with liver cancer was a battle he didn’t know he was fighting. He spent the last half of 2021; “just not feeling right”, he attributed it to something he ate, not getting enough sleep, or maybe stress. His trips to the doctor and blood tests didn’t identify the true cause of his discomfort. By Christmas, he had begun to turn jaundice and the blood tests started to show a cause for concern, but he came down with COVID and delayed seeing a specialist. 

Once he was admitted to the hospital, it was very quickly determined he had an aggressive liver cancer and there was a blockage in his bile duct. It was decided he would get the blockage removed; then go home to process his diagnosis. What is still so difficult for family and friends to accept was Brad found out his diagnosis by himself, no family could be with him. He in turn had to tell his family this news by phone. His source for energy, “people”, couldn’t be with him leading up to the very first surgery he ever had in his life. After the stints were inserted into his bile duct and he was able to go home, the stints failed. The family brought him back to the hospital where they attempted surgery, but it was too late and he died due to sepsis. It was eight days from the time he learned his diagnosis.

While there are times we feel a certain amount of mercy that Brad’s known battle was extremely short; there is a huge void and a deep sadness we couldn’t say good-bye. There is comfort in how Brad lived his life. He didn’t leave words unsaid. He lifted us up and encouraged us daily.

Brad was a gift and would have found so much joy in being the LIVEr Champion!

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